Air conditioning system



United States Patent 3,394,561 AIR CONDITIONING SYSTEM Leonard Glickman, 3001 N. Bay Road, Miami Beach, Fla. 33140 Filed Sept. 19, 1966, Ser. No. 580,227 2 Claims. (Cl. 62-324) ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A reverse cycle air conditioning system including a compressor, condenser, evaporator, slide valve and ducts connecting the various .parts in a conventional manner, and having a duct connecting the inlet manifold of the condensor or outdoor coil with the outlet duct of the compressor whereby during the heating cycle of operation, a small portion of compressed liquid refrigerant leaving the compressor flows to the manifold of the outdoor coil now operating as an evaporator gives off heat to the outdoor coil and flows to the reversing Valve which connects the manifold of the outdoor coil with the suction duct of the compressor.

This invention relates to an air conditioning system and is more particularly directed to an air conditioning system whose efliciency during the heating cycle is equal to if not higher than that achieved during the cooling cycle.

It is known that an air conditioning system that is designed to operate with a high efiiciency in its cooling cycle of operation will not operate as efficiently during its heating cycle of operation. To correct this condition compromises have been instituted in the designs of the system which reduced the efficiency of the air conditioning system during its cooling cycle and increased to a slight extent the efficiency of operation during the heating cycle. In addition extra capillary tubes have been added to the system in combination with a valve, which attempted to increase the efiiciency of the heating cycle of operation. Also, strip heaters were incorporated in the system to provide heat for the ambient air which gives off its heat to the expanding refrigerant in the evaporator to prevent the treated air from dropping to freezing temperatures at which temperature, the air conditioning system is most ineflicient if it will operate at all. Another disadvantage experienced by the present air conditioning systems during the heating cycle is the building up of high head pressures and the retention of the head pressure when the air conditioner is not in operation. As a consequence the present systems require motor starting components to overcome the load existing at the starting of the compressor. The present invention contemplates an air conditioning system which corrects the above indicated deficiencies.

Therefore, a principal object of the present invention is to provide an air conditioning system which operates at maximum efficiency during both the cooling or heating cycles.

Another object of the present invention is to provide an air conditioning system which is capable of operating efficiently during the heating cycle at the low ambient temperatures that the present air conditioners would fail to operate or operate most inefliciently.

A further object of the present invention is to provide an air conditioning system which eliminates the danger of building up excessive head pressures in the compressor during operation of system in its heating cycle.

A still further object of the present invention is to provide an air conditioning system which permits the compressor to start in an unloaded condition and thereby eliminates the need for motor starting components now required by conventional air conditioners.

3,394,561 Patented July 30, 1968 With these and other objects in view, the invention will be best understood from a consideration of the following detailed description taken in connection with the accompanying drawing forming a part of this specification, with the understanding, however, that the invention is not confined to any strict conformity with the showing of the drawing but may be changed or modified so long as such changes or modifications mark no material departure from the salient features of the invention as expressed in the appended claims.

In the drawing:

FIGURE 1 is a schematic diagram of my air conditioning system showing the operation of same in its cooling cycle.

FIGURE 2 is a similar view showing the operation of the system in its heating cycle.

Referring to the drawing wherein like numerals are used to designate similar parts throughout the several views, the numeral 10 refers to a compressor whose outlet is connected to a duct 11 which extends to an inlet port 12 of a valve housing 13. The valve housing 13 is provided with a chamber 19 having three ports 14, 15 and 16 over which a slide valve 17 reciprocates for the purpose of controlling the flow of refrigerant selectively therethrough. The slide valve 17 is provided with a passageway 18 and stems 19 for actuating the slide valve whereby ports 16 and 15 may be made to communicate with each other or ports 15 and 14 are made to communicate with each other.

A duct 21 is connected at one end to the port 16 of the reversing valve 13 while its other end is connected to one end of a heat exchanger or inside coil 22 which operates as a conventional evaporator during the cooling cycle and whose other end is connected to a capillary or restricter tube 23. The capillary tube 23 extends to a manifold 24 mounted on a forming a part of a heat exchanger or outside coil 25 which operates as a conventional condenser during the cooling cycle. The outside coil 25 is connected at its other end to a second manifold 26 that communicates with the port 14 of the reversing valve 13 by means of the duct 27. Also connected to the manifold 26 is a restricter-type equalizing tube 30 which extends to the compressor discharge duct 11. Although the outside coil 25 is shown as consisting of the manifolds 24 and 26 connected together by tubing of three separate circuits, any number of circuits may be used depending on the design of the condenser 25 which operates as an evaporator during the heating cycle, whet-her it be a single circuit or a multi-circuit as shown. Finally, a duct 28 connects the port 15 of the reversing valve 13 with the suction side of the compressor 10 to return the refrigerant to the compressor 10.

In the normal operation of my air conditioning system during the cooling cycle, the compressed refrigerant will flow from the compressor 10 through the duct 11 to the reversing valve inlet 12 and into the valve chamber 19. With the valve 17 shown in the position indicated by FIG- URE 1, the main body of compressed refrigerant gas will leave the reversing valve 13 via the outlet 14 into the duct 27 where the refrigerant in a highly compressed gaseous state is delivered to the manifold 26 and the outside coil 25. The remainder of the compressed gases discharged by the compressor 10 is by-passed into the equalizing tube from the duct 11 to the manifold 26. Here the coolant, whether it be ambient air, water or a chemical such as alcohol, flows past the fins and coils forming the condenser 25, withdraws the heat from the compressed gaseous refrigerant and reduces it to a liquid state where it flows to the manifold 24 and into the capillary tube 23.

The liquid refrigerant is discharged from the capillary tube 23 into the inside coil 22 now operating as an evaporator where the liquid refrigerant is permitted to expand and vaporize withdrawing heat from the air passing through the evaporator 22 to thereby cool or refrigerate the air that is discharged in the room or area being cooled. The refrigerant now leaves the evaporator in a gaseous state through the duct 21 to the port 16, passageway 18 in the valve 17 and out through the port 15. The duct 28 then directs the flow of refrigerant to the suction or inlet side of the compressor to complete the cooling cycle of operation.

Upon actuation of the reversing valve 13 to the position shown by FIGURE 2 the heating cycle is initiated whereby the ports 14 and 15 communicate with each other and port 16 is now exposed and in communication with the inlet port 12. As in the cooling cycle, highly compressed refrigerant in a gaseous state is discharged by the compressor 10 through the duct 11 and into reversing valve chamber 19. However, a portion of the refrigerant is bypassed as in the cooling cycle from the duct 11 through the equalizing tube 30 and into the manifold 26. The main portion of refrigerant that flowed into the valve chamber 19 is discharged via the port 16 through the duct 21 and into the inside coil 22 which now operates as a condenser since the air or other coolant passing through the inside cool 22 removes the heat from the refrigerant to liquify it. This air passing through the inside coil 22 becomes heated and is discharged into the room or area being heated. The liquid refrigerant leaves the inside coil 22 through the capillary tube 23 and flows into the manifold 24 of the outside coil 25 which now operates as an evaporator to cause the refrigerant to vaporize therein. The ambient air, if air is used, will give up its heat as it passes through the outside coil 25 to return the liquid refrigerant to a gaseous state which is then discharged into the manifold 26 and through the duct 27, the valve passageway 18 and into the duct 28 where it is returned to the compressor 10.

As indicated hereinabove the equalizing tube 30 permits a portion of the hot compressed refrigerant discharged by the compressor 10 to be by-passed directly to the discharge manifold 26 of the outside coil 25. These by-passed hot compressed refrigerant gases will give up their heat to the expanding liquid refrigerant that have been discharged by the capillary tube 23 into the outside coil 25. The equalizing tube permits the flow of a sufficient quantity of hot compressed gaseous refrigerant to flow directly into the outside coil or evaporator 25 so that rather than the temperature of the evaporator treated air being lower than the ambient air as occurs in the conventional air conditioner in the heating cycle, the treated air is actually hotter than the ambient air.

As for example, in the conventional air conditioner during the heating cycle, when the ambient air which is air prior to passing through the heat exchanger 25 is 50 F., the treated air which is the air after having passed through the evaporator 25 will be close to freezing temperature. In the present air conditioner with the use of the equalizing tube, when the ambient air is 50 F. the treated air will be as high as 60 F. It is obvious that as a result, the air conditioning system shown and described herein will operate during its heating cycle at lower outdoor temperatures and at a higher efficiency than the conventional air conditioners.

The refrigerant which leaves the outside coil 25 is in a gaseous state and passes through the duct 27, through the valve passageway 18 and compressor inlet duct 28 to enter the compressor 10 to be compressed once again.

Also in view of the fact that the equalizer tube 30 connects both sides of the compressor 10, it will eliminate any excess head pressure that may build up on the pressure side of the compressor 10 during its operation as a heat pump during the heating cycle. In view of this, the relative sizes of the heat exchangers, inside and outside coils 22 and 24 are made to conform to that which brings about the highest efficiency in the cooling as well as heating cycles. It is well known that the air conditioning system will be most efficient during the cooling cycle when the condenser or outside coil 25 is larger than the evaporator or inside coil 22. However, when the air conditioning system is operating in the heating cycle there is a danger of breakdowns due to high head pressure in the compressor 10 if the condenser which is now operating as an evaporator is more than 50% larger than the condenser. In the present air conditioning system there can be no build-up of head pressure. Consequently the condenser 25 can be as much as 2 /2 times as large as the evaporator. With these relative sizes, the system is most efficient both during the cooling and heating cycles of ope-ration.

After the compressor has been cut-off the head pressure is immediately neutralized or reduced to zero, whereby upon starting the compressor 10, the latter is started under no load. This eliminates the need for any motor starting components.

Having disclosed my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States is:

1. An air conditioning system comprising reversing valve means, a compressor having an inlet and an outlet, pressure duct means connecting said outlet and said reversing valve means, said reversing valve means having a plurality of ports, an indoor and an outdoor heat exchange means each having an inlet and an outlet with reference to the cooling cycle of operation, suction duct means connecting the first of said ports and said inlet of said compressor, a duct connecting the second of said ports and said inlet of said outdoor heat exchanger, a further duct connecting the third of said ports and said outlet of said indoor heat exchanger, capillary tubing means connecting said outlet of said outdoor heat exchanger and said inlet of said indoor heat exchanger, and a restricted-type equalizing tube substantially communicating between said outlet of said compressor and said inlet of said outdoor heat exchanger whereby during the heating cycle of said air conditioning system heat is transferred from the outlet of said compressor to said outdoor heat exchanger and excessive head pressures are prevented in said compressor.

2. The structure as recited by claim 1 wherein said reversing valve means is provided with a valve body having a passageway connecting said first and said third ports during the cooling cycle and said first and said second ports during the heating cycle of operation.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,666,298 1/1954 Jones 62160 2,785,540 3/1957 Biehn 62324 2,969,655 1/1961 Salter 62-324 2,992,541 7/1961 Sutton 62324 3,068,661 12/1962 McGrath 62-460 3,293,880 12/1966 Greenawalt 62-324 WILLIAM J. WYE, Primary Examiner. 

